Cafe 11 closed

lucky11

Another business leaves 7th Ave. Any idea why?

http://www.yelp.com/biz/cafe-11-brooklyn

testiculon

Yeah I saw that on my way home too. Can't say I'm surprised....I never went in, because the place seemed so damned uninviting from outside.

Oh well, NEXT!

mpmav1

I was just coming on the forum to post the same thing. I'm a bit suprised seeing as though they seem to just open. I'm sure it boils down to just an over saturated coffee market on that block.

Very nice couple, however. Sad.

cabaki

Every time i walked past that place in the morning, it was empty. The owners were always sitting around chatting with each other or sitting at one of the tables.

I went there a few times, but the last time was when the power outlets werent working, the bathroom was out of order, and their internet was down.

Not to mention, with Naidres and the Tea Lounge across the street, there was pretty stiff competition to begin with.

veets

I hate to read about failed businesses in PS. I want every business that has a good concept and is offering good product (whatever it is) to suceed but I am also amazed how anyone can open a business, capitalize it and not look across the street to see that there is comeptition at a level that will make it almost impossible for their business to thrive. What is that about? I don't get it.

mpmav1

veets wrote: I hate to read about failed businesses in PS. I want every business that has a good concept and is offering good product (whatever it is) to suceed but I am also amazed how anyone can open a business, capitalize it and not look across the street to see that there is comeptition at a level that will make it almost impossible for their business to thrive. What is that about? I don't get it.

Completely Agree.

turtle95

It is sad to see any small business fail, but in some cases, you can see it coming a mile away. I gave the place two chances when it first opened and I really have to say the employees I interacted with really didn't get the fact that they were working in a service business.

The hours were odd (closing at 7:00, which seemed kind of early) and as mentioned earlier, it was just uninviting. They didn't seem to have a strategy for how they wanted to position themselves and there was nothing unique about what they offered.

Probably lots of reasons they went out of business, but the fact that they had such uninspired customer service kept me from returning. I go to Windsor Cafe a lot, not because the food is superb (it's okay) but because the people that work there and friendly, engaging and make me feel like a valued customer. If you're pushing something a consumer can get anywhere, you have to give them some compelling reason to choose your establishment over another one and Cafe 11 didn't do that at all.

doldrums

Here's my take on Cafe11 and a comparison:

Cafe 11
No decaf
-very little food items and not very appealing.
Too big a place, always seemd empty even when people were inside
Uninspired service
But worst of all, although they used good ingredients (illy), the cappuccinos and lattes were not good.

Cafe Regular is on a side street on 11th between 4th and 5th
They have decaf
The pastries from Sullivan Street Bakery are first rate,
Hard boiled eggs -nice touch
Small place designed like the type of cafe you would visit in Italy
Great service
FANTASTIC cappuccinos and lattes
Always crowded, People who lived near Cafe 11 would walk out of their way to go to Cafe Regular, or Naidre's for that matter

That's my read of the situation.

brooklyngigcenter

True, they made some strategic mistakes, but probably the more immediate reason for their under-capitalization was high rent. It's very sad that a mom-and-pop like that would have a dream, execute it and not be able to keep it going because the cost of business in this neighborhood is too crushing. We're seeing this happen all over the Slope and the city, and so we end up with chain retail and more banks.

raw

veets wrote: I hate to read about failed businesses in PS. I want every business that has a good concept and is offering good product (whatever it is) to suceed but I am also amazed how anyone can open a business, capitalize it and not look across the street to see that there is comeptition at a level that will make it almost impossible for their business to thrive. What is that about? I don't get it.

Agreed.

I went to this cafe once only because two other cafes with better seating arrangements and ambience were too crowded. Its food and coffee were fine. I was there about two hours. Some customers struck me as rude. Since this cafe, when I visited, did not have a sugar/sweetener/creamer serve-yourself-section, some customers were huffy, hissing stuff at staff like, "ISN'T THERE SUGAR ANY WHERE???" You could get sugar no problem, but not in typical Starbucks format.

The closed cafe might have succeeded with sofas and bohemian style.

Local cafes get too crowded sometimes, so I'm always happy for a new one to open.